Abdulaziz Al-Qazwini
|profession = Politican |religion = |languages_spoken = |allegiance = Union of Islamic Revolutionary Mujahideen |serviceyears = 1986 - 1990 |rank = |unit = |battles = Qatifi Civil War |awards = }} Abdulaziz Al-Qazwini |posthumous = |alternative = }} Abdulaziz Lu'ay Al-Qazwini (عبد العزيز لؤي القزويني; born 12th July 1949) is a Qatifi cleric and politician who served as the fifth president of Qatif between 2015 to 2016. He also serves as the leader of the Union of Islamic Revolutionary Mujahideen, a former Shia militia trained by and the . He was the first democratically elected president of Qatif, and the first not to come from a military background. Al-Qazwini was born in the city of Hofuf in 1949. In the late 1960's he moved to where he studied at the where he was exposed to several prominent Iranian Islamists including . Returning to Qatif in the early 1970's Al-Qazwini became a critic of Qatifi leader Mustafa al-Karim criticising his secular policies. The outbreak of the Qatifi Civil War saw Al-Qazwini help create the Union of Islamic Revolutionary Mujahideen, a Shia nationalist militia group that allied itself with the Qatifi government against the Islamic Liberation Army. Following the end of the civil war Al-Qazwini became a prominent figure within the Islamist community of Qatif. During the Palm Revolution Al-Qazwini expanded the Union of Islamic Revolutionary Mujahideen until in became a coalition of Qatifi Shia Islamist groups, that soon became the main opposition force in Qatif. In the 2015 presidential elections Al-Qazwini was the Mujahideen's candidate, where he won 52% of the national vote in the runoff elections beating incumbent president Mohammed Mujawar. Al-Qazwini has been identified as being a hardliner in Islamist circles, but has been pushed to adopt centrist and moderate positions since becoming President. As the Cabinet is mainly made up of Ba'athists Al-Qazwini has been forced to work within a system of wherein he handles foreign policy and national security whilst the Ba'athist cabinet handles domestic policy. In the summer of 2016 political deadlock with the Ba'athist cabinet led to Al-Qazwini to be overthrown in a military coup by pro-Ba'athists within the Ministry of the Interior. Biography Early life Abdulaziz Al-Qazwini was born in the southern town of Hofuf on the 12th July, 1949. Hofuf was a stronghold for , with Al-Qazwini's family being made up of wealthy silk farmers, with Al-Qazwini being their first child. Al-Qazwini was brought up in a very religious household with his father being well versed in . Al-Qazwini was taught verses from the at a very early age. Al-Qazwini attended a local religious school when he was seven, being taught by Islamic scholars. He was take along with his siblings in 1955 to perform the , which marked the only time Al-Qazwini has visited . In 1966 his parents arranged for him to move to the capital of Al-Khatt to attend the Al-Tahir University studying theology and Islamic law. Time in Iran In 1967 following the disatrpus the teaching of theology was severely limited in Qatif following the regime of Mustafa al-Karim heightening policies due to perceived threats by Islamists. As such Al-Qazwini was forced to move out of Qatif to continue his religious studies. Using funds from his parents he managed to travel to in the where he was able to attend the and continue his studies. During his studies however in Iran launched his which saw widespread social and economic reforms in Iran. Al-Qazwini saw the reforms as damaging as those of al-Karim's in Qatif. As a result of this he started to become influenced by Iranian cleric who became a sharp critic of the Shah. As Khomeini was at the time exiled Al-Qazwini was directly influenced by . In 1968 he moved to the holy city of to further study Islam. During this time Al-Qazwini became interested in economics reading the works of western economists such as , , and as well as Islamic ones most prominently . Al-Qazwini became convinced that both the socialist economics of al-Karim and the free market orientated direction of the Shah were un-Islamic, advocating for a hybrid of the two that would have some basis in Sharia law. As a young Arab cleric who was associated with notable critics of the Shah's regime, Al-Qazwini was reportedly spied on by , who suspected him of performing acts of espionage on behalf of the Qatifi government. As such in November 1969 Al-Qazwini left Iran for Qatif after being recommended too by his friends. Return to Qatif Upon returning to Qatif Al-Qazwini became a critic of al-Karim's secular regime. He called for the implementation of Sharia law in Qatif, moving to Al-Ahsa which was a hotbed for Shia Islamists at the time, and participated in several anti-government movements. Al-Qazwini wrote several books and pamphlets that condemned the government as well as outline his own political philosophy. In 1970 Al-Qazwini was arrested and detained in the Al-Kabrit Prison, which housed many opponents of regime. Al-Qazewini was subject to hard labour as well as torture, being by prison guards. During the Qatif-Trucial War Al-Qazwini heavily condemned the Trucial States stating that a Sunni government should not rule over the Shia majority in Bahrain. Despite this Al-Qazwini was seen by the west as an increasingly prominent opposition figure with many dissidents reading his books and pamphlets. Al-Qazwini was thus moved from the Al-Kabrit Prison in 1976 to Qatif City where he was placed under house arrest. In 1979 following the Al-Qazwini approved of the new government of Khomeini, calling for the Muslims of Qatif to overthrow the government of al-Karim in a similar revolution. al-Karim had his books banned and had him beaten in his own home. During this time he married his second cousin, Zein Al-Qazwini. At the offset of the he initially accused the Qatifi government of supporting 's , but it was soon made clear by the Qatifi governments rhetoric that it condemned the invasion. As al-Karim's government refused to ship Iraqi oil with its tankers it alliance to Iran started to become more clear, causing Al-Qazwini to soften his rhetoric considerably towards the regime. Following al-Karim's death in early 1986 Al-Qazwini was released from house arrest under an executive order signed by president Othman al-Hussein. Qatifi Civil War Following the death of al-Karim al-Hussein increased sectarian tensions between Shia and Sunni Muslims, capitulating on the heightened fear of Islamism that had succeeded the Iranian Revolution and the . Already more Sunni Muslims inspired by the had started to launch terrorist acts against the Qatifi government, causing the government in turn to mobilise radical Shia clerics to further heighten tensions, in the hopes of creating public unity against the Sunni Islamists. One such cleric was Al-Qazwini who since being released from house arrest had contacted the Iranian government and created the Union of Islamic Revolutionary Mujahideen. It is speculated the UIRM was created before then and having previously simply seen Al-Qazwini as a spiritual leader. Nevertheless by the outbreak of civil war Al-Qazwini was in firm control of the organisation, which operated under a Leninist party structure. Union of Islamic Revolutionary Mujahideen Palm Revolution President Shortly after becoming president Al-Qazwini quickly clashed with the Ba'athist cabinet led by Prime Minister Zayd Hossaini. Al-Qazwini had proposed a controversial proposal that would replace the 1973 Penal Code with one that enshrined Islamic Sharia law and principles above secular ones within the legal process. In September 2015 the proposal was blocked by the Cabinet despite Al-Qazwini's insistence that such a proposal be at least presented to the legislature. On the 8th October 2015 Hossaini finally relented stating that the proposal would be forwarded as a bill to the National People's Council later in the month. Syrian Civil War Al-Qazwini has been a staunch supporter of the regime of during the , and has increased Qatifi aid to the regime including military hardware and humanitarian aid. In November 2015 following the Al-Qazwini has proposed to send in the Qatifi Airforce to participate in airstrikes against the and the . He has also stated that deployment of the Ba'athist Revolutionary Guards is not out of the question, nor the sending over of veterans generals from the Qatifi Civil War. In September 2015 Al-Qazwini officially stated his desire to take in , stating the Qatifi government is "committed" to accept at least 5,000 refugees by 2016. This makes Qatif the first and only Gulf State to accept Syrian refugees. Critics have accused the Qatifi government so far of only accepting Syrian and other Shia Muslims, and that accepting refugees has been hampered by a complicated screening process. As of November 2015 around 2,340 Syrian refugees reside in Qatif, the majority within refugee camps. 2016 coup Beliefs Public image Personal life Category:Qatif Category:Individuals